ORIGIN

Stored Since ’73: 1949 Ford Country Squire Woody

1/2/2009 Update: This Ford woody wagon is now listed here on eBay with more photos. We are now even more impressed with the survivor condition. We have updated the photo link below.

From 12/19/2008:

This 1949 Ford Woody wagon has been sitting in a garage since 1973 and wears refurbished wood and black paint from 1963. It has the factory flathead V8 with a 3-speed manual transmission and is in driving condition. Find it here on the H.A.M.B. in San Diego, California for $57,500.

This car still has all original interior with the exception of the front bench seat which was re-covered in 1969. The period feel, patina, and understated dark color make this car look like many of the San Onofre parking lot photos from the period.

This shot from 1963 and is a little too now, but there us still a similar white example in the lower left. The price might be a little hefty but this Country Squire is perfect as-is and should be made reliable but not restored.

Comments

To Sean and everyone else curious about my Siata, I just took a long and spirited drive in it yesterday, and it was very fun to drive, especially when the five-speed close-ratio gearbox, supercharged engine, dual Webers and small size (about that of a Spridget) are factored in. The roadholding is impressive, and the handling is great. The only problems are in the form of a very tight cockpit, excessive cockpit heat, and lack of crash protection. Several people got it confused with a vintage Ferrari, and I will state that my car is one of only a handful left of a small production run with roll-down windows rather than sliding ones.

Sean: I don’t wish to give out my e-mail address or other personal information, but here’s the whole story with the Siata. The car’s history is largely unknown other than that it was originally red with a tan interior and came from the factory with close-ratio gears, a supercharger and Stabilimenti Farina coachwork and that it generally resembles an Otto Vu (Fiat V-8)-powered 208S roadster with a top shaped like that of a Cunningham C-3. Its engine was pulled sometime in the 1960s for unknown reasons (lack of Fiat 1400 parts in the U.S., perhaps?) in favor of a 1960s Volvo P1800 or Amazon four-cylinder with a crude, homemade addition to mate the Volvo flywheel with the Fiat clutch. Predictably, the adapter failed, and the car was parked in a garage until I traded a Bristol 403 for it in 1999. The car is currently in the body shop getting the rust repaired and assorted dents and Bondo removed, and I am currently working on a new engine that is based on a Re-Originals Fiat 1400 block, a head that was purchased at a swap meet, numerous Bayless internal parts and a supercharger that had been sitting on a shelf at my favorite used-auto-parts dealer since 1962. I should be busy for some time, and I will be off the airwaves, so to speak, for a while. I hope to get the restoration into Hemmings Sports and Exotic, but they have ignored me, much like their American classic sister publication did with the 1951 Lincoln that I no longer have. That’s my story, and I hope everyone knows what I am up to.

Darrell- I read almost every post and every comment on this site, and you miss no opportunity to inform us of your Daina Siata project. Do you have a link to some pictures where we can see your progress? I’d love to see it! -Sean

This car appears to be a very worthwhile project, and it might very well make it into the Hemmings Classic Car magazine “Drivable Dreams” section, which features original, running, drivable classics in states of preservation ranging from well-kept to nearly derelict. I’m with Tom on the subject of rebuilding it as a resto-mod. Resto-mods are overrated, and I am undertaking the driver/occasional show-level restoration of a “resto-mod” of a different sort, namely, a 1953 Siata Daina Gran Sport coupe that was fitted with a Volvo B18 four-cylinder and was crudely restored, thus making it a resto-mod. Although a Siata and a Ford are two very different animals, I like both, and if I didn’t like this Ford woodie, then I would not have commented. The price is acceptable for something in this condition, and is even better if the wood is of good quality, properly installed and in good condition.

I had this exact car when I was 16 (20 years ago)….of course mine was a basketcase, no wood, not running, fairly rusty, rotted frame..but fairly complete. Bought it for $100 at Iola..thought I made a fortune when I sold it for $500 d’oh Its on my list of regrets… Nice example here….